Background: Prognostic nutritional index (PNI) has been studied in various types of cancer which is significantly correlated with prognosis. The study aims to investigate the predictive role of PNI in patients with metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC) treated with systemic chemotherapy. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 141 patients with mUC who received systemic chemotherapy. PNI was calculated as 10 × serum albumin concentration (g/dL) + 0.005 × lymphocyte count (number/mm2). The optimal cut-off value for PNI was estimated by using receiver operating curve analysis. Independent factors associated with progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were determined by Cox proportional regression models. Results: The recommended cut-off value for PNI was 40. Patients with a low PNI had more visceral metastases (p < 0.0001), leukocytosis (p = 0.006), and anemia (p < 0.0001). On univariate analysis, patients with a low PNI had poor OS than those with a high PNI (p < 0.0001). The multivariate analysis showed PNI was an independent factor to predict OS (p = 0.001). Conclusions: Our study showed PNI is an independent prognostic factor in patients with mUC. Our work is clinically useful for anticipation of outcomes, risks stratification in clinical studies as well as patients counseling.
Keywords: chemotherapy; metastatic urothelial carcinoma; overall survival; prognosis; prognostic nutritional index.